PRESS STATEMENT FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
31st October 2022
M’MEMBE’S HATRED FOR THE PEOPLE OF SOUTHERN PROVINCE IS WELL DOCUMENTED
We, as a party, note with great concern the allegations by the Socialist Party leader, Dr Fred M’membe, that the UPND is converting government and state institutions into apparatus for partisan favours, nepotism and payback knowing fully well that this was a lie. To give credence to his allegations he goes on to cite the ongoing recruitment of teachers, nurses, military and police personnel as being characterised by patterns of partisanship, nepotism, regionalism, and that a base is being planned for Southern Province.
To start with, the UPND has taken a strategic decision to detach the party from the government. This is something President Hakainde Hichilema has been emphatic about. The only connection between the party and the government is in the UPND manifesto which is a social and economic guide to government programmes.
Given where we are coming from with the PF, where the party was used as a tool for looting national resources instead of providing good governance, it regrettably that the evil acts undoubtedly proved to be unpopular with Zambians, hence the loss. But in the short to long-term, the benefits of this decision will become apparent. Therefore, which UPND members is Dr M’membe referring to as having been beneficiaries of government favours? If anything, the UPND is being blamed by the membership and the Zambian populace at large for being too lenient to the opposition members.
Like any other Zambian, we have observed that the recruitment of civil servants, the disbursement of CDF, and Social Cash Transfer, for instance, has been done in a transparent and non-discriminatory manner, to a point where even some PF councillors resigned from their positions because they had been employed in government.
But what is appalling and scary is Dr M’membe’s assertion that the UPND-led government is employing regionalism, using government jobs, to grow the political base in the Southern Province. We are, nonetheless, not shocked that such a statement is coming from Dr M’membe’s mouth going by his long stinking hatred for the Tongas. My advice to my brother Mmembe who is an academic rounder, is that if you want to rule Zambia as president, the earlier you recognize the numerical and economic strength of the Tongas and the Bantu-bo-Tatwe group, the better. They are, without questions, a formidable force and most importantly, they are human beings who should be treated with respect within their own rights.
In the first place, Dr M’membe’s hatred for the people of Southern Province, who he usually refers to as Bantustans, is well documented. Definitely, given his stance when it comes to the people of Southern Province, who include all of the country’s ethnic groupings, Dr M’membe loses all manner of reasoning because of the hatred he harbours for the Zambians in this province.
Our appeal is for Dr M’membe to focus on why a lot of people are leaving the Socialist Party on account of his individualistic leadership tendencies. It is a well known fact that he has reduced that political party to a pocket agenda sponsored by suspected foreign agents. Fred knows too that the UPND has exhibited very high levels of transparency and accountability in every action they have taken in the interest of the Zambian people. We will continue to rise to higher dimensions.
All in all, Dr Fred Namakando Mmembe, please be a national player who practices the one Zambia one Nation way of doing things.
Hon Batuke Imenda
SECRETARY GENERAL